By Ben Ogbemudia Abuja
Concerned citizens of Edo State and the civil society organisations yesterday said the Niger/Delta problems have been further compounded by the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio’s appointment of a former aide and cousin, Mr. Effiong Akwa as Sole Administrator of the Commission. To them, it was a continuous violation of the extant Laws guiding the Commission.

The group’s spokesperson, Comrade Kola Edokpayi, in a press briefing in Benin City, the Edo State capital, said they were aware that the Forensic Audit Report was submitted on September 2, 2021, to President Muhammadu Buhari through the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Mallam Abubakar Malami. They, however, said they were surprised at the minister’s attitude at denying the region of its rights.

“We suspect that the Forensic Audit exposed and indicted many top and influential people in the Niger Delta Region, who, over the years, turned the NDDC into a very fat cash cow. They have continually fleeced the NDDC and stand as stumbling blocks to the realisation of the set objectives of the Commission to provide infrastructural development to the region and enhance the well-being of its people,” they said.

According to Edokpayi, since December 2020, Akpabio has one man running the affairs of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) as a Sole Administrator.

“This has been condemned roundly by various stakeholders of the Niger Delta Region, as it runs contrary to the Act setting up the Commission. We lend our voices to the people of the region in rejecting this aberration in its totality. “We would like to draw the attention of Mr. President, to some salient facts which the continued stay of a Sole Administrator in NDDC portends.

With a Sole Administrator, the states of the Niger Delta except Akwa Ibom, do not have representation, and therefore, have no say in the activities of the Commission in the region.

“The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, the Sole Administrator, Mr. Effiong Akwa and the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Ita Solomon Enang, are all from Akwa Ibom State. Effectively, the other eight (8) states have been shut out of the activities of NDDC in the region, in all ramifications.

“There is supposed to be an equitable distribution of Projects among the nine (9) member states. But this has been jettisoned. Since Mr. Effiong Akwa took over the headship of NDDC. Projects distribution has been lopsided with 70-80% of NDDC projects sited in Akwa Ibom State. This is against the NDDC Act and cannot be tolerated,” the group said.

They accused the Niger Delta minister of ensuring that only his kith and kins were employed by the commission. “Under the present Sole Administrator and the watchful eyes of the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, most employment has gone to their kith and kin, against the spirit of the Federal Character Commission Act, the Code of Conduct Act and the Labour Act. It was this development that led to the mass protest against Senator Akpabio for employing 1,000 of his kinsmen, by Niger Delta Youth as reported in The Guardian Newspaper of 8th September 2021. THIS IS NEPOTISM AND MUST BE CHECKED,” they said.

The group said oil majors operating in the region channel millions of dollars through the NDDC towards the empowerment and other social responsibility acts for youths in communities where they operate. But they said: “As we speak, no single empowerment programme has taken place in any of the member states, except in Akwa Ibom, where Senator Akpabio and Mr. Effiong Akwa have domiciled all NDDC activities. In the same vein, no scholarship has been advertised or awarded by the Commission since the coming of the present managers of NDDC.”

They continued: “From the underlying facts that have emerged since the completion and submission of the Forensic Audit, it is clear now that the audit was a mere excuse by the Minister to delay the inauguration of the confirmed NDDC Board nominees, and a ploy for deeper interest.

“It is from the considerations above that we, the Concerned Edo Citizens in conjunction with the Coalition of Edo Volunteers Group, are calling on His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari to as a matter of urgency, effect the following: The immediate inauguration of the substantive Board of NDDC as presently constituted, screened and confirmed by the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, since November 2019.”

They, therefore urged the President to “remove the Agency from the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs and return it to the Presidency; release government’s White paper on the Forensic Audit report submitted on September 2nd, 2021, and take punitive actions against all those found wanting and indicted by the Forensic Audit report to serve as deterrent to others”.

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The group also wants the NDDC board screened since 2019 by the National Assembly, inaugurated. “It would be recalled that on the 5th of November 2019, the Senate screened and confirmed the nominees of President Muhammadu Buhari into the NDDC Board. The expectations were high, and the people joyously awaited the inauguration of the new board. However, a sudden twist came when the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs Chief Senator Godswill Akpabio announced the commencement of a Forensic Audit of the Commission from 2009 – 2019, on the order of Mr. President. This was to last for three (3) months. On the strength of the Forensic Audit, an Interim Management Committee (which is an aberration), was put in place to oversee the affairs of the Commission. This was expected to last for six (6) months when the audit would have been completed.

“Let it be stated loud and clear that nothing prevents a substantive board, as screened, and confirmed by the Senate from being in place while the audit is being carried out. After all, an audit is a check on the past activities of an organization, in this case, the NDDC, and not the future activities of the Commission,” they said.